Anders Ilar comes back with an intelligent minimal techno album, full of ambient and glitch elements that compliment the ongoing groove in every single way. And I guess it wouldn’t be fair to file Sworn under minimal techno. After all, the only stylistic hint at that category is its four-four beat, and not on every track. The rest of the music is as close to techno as was The Last Resort by Trentemøller (I mean that in a good way).
And I don’t just accidentally mention that name. The production and experimental IDM touch, which Anders Ilar is so proficient at, indeed reminds me of Trentemøller’s excellent work. And it shouldn’t be a surprise. The Swedish producer has considerable output behind him on many excellent labels, such as Shitkatapult, Audio.nl, the dearly missed Merck, and its offshoot, Narita. The latter mentioned label survived its parent only by a year and a half, announcing the news that during late summer of this year (2008), it will release its last compilation, sadly titled Terminal (although it also fits within Narita’s nomenclature relating to the Tokyo airport). Meanwhile, its last release this past April was none other then a collaboration between Anders Ilar and Fredrik Hedvall, titled Melt. Ilar’s 2006 eight-track LP on Merck, Ludwijka, and its extended release in 2007 on Shitkatapult, Ludwijka – Extended Visit, should serve as an excellent base and a great predecessor to Sworn.
I usually begin my Ilar playlist with the former and end it with the latter, and I recommend you do the same. This is a great [re]discovery! An absolute must for fans of Trentemøller, Minilougue, Booka Shade, Gui Boratto as well as Deaf Center, Yagya, and Rod Modell alike.
